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The Orphan Girl Theatre is a children's theatre that is a separate
but integral part of the non-profit educational organization,
the Butte Center for the Performing Arts, Inc. located in beautiful
Southwestern Montana.
This renowned children's theatre exists to foster an artistic
educational and culturally enriching environment for the children
of Butte and surrounding communities with opportunities to develop
their talents, skill, confidence and self-esteem through the
dramatic and performing arts.
The Orphan Girl Theatre recently received national recognition
for its work. Along with its parent organization, The Butte Center
for the Performing Arts, the Orphan Girl was among only 18 nonprofit
organizations in the United States and Mexico to receive Coming Up Taller Awards. The prestigious
national honor recognizes outstanding community arts and humanities
programs that celebrate and foster the creativity of children.
The Orphan Girl's
projects strive to make theatre arts accessible to children through
live performances, workshops, camps and other means, especially
for those children who might not otherwise have the opportunity.
A primary goal is to demonstrate to children and the community
the importance of arts education in the overall educational development
of children.
The 106-seat
house is named for a local silver mine, the Orphan Girl, that
was once owned by Copper King and Butte founder Marcus Daly.
More than simply
a children's theatre production company, our organization exists
to help children and other interested persons of Butte and its
surrounding communities to discover and learn more about their
artistic abilities, particularly through the medium of live theatre
performance and education, and about how they can cooperatively
express their gifts in relationship to others.
Instruction
in the areas of acting, improvisation, musical theatre, mask-making,
movement, character development, playmaking, lighting, and set
design are examples of some of the exciting and fun classes and
workshops held during the 2004 camp with final performances held
on the last day of class. The generous grant from the Dennis
and Phyllis Washington Foundation will ensure that the summer
camp will be held in Butte again in 2005 and 2006.
Thanks to a generous grant of $75,000
over the next three years
from the Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation, the Orphan
Girl Theatre was able to hold its Summer Theatre Camp in two,
two-week sessions in July.
The Dennis and Phyllis Washington Summer Theatre Camp at the
Mother Lode and Orphan Girl Theatres allows young people to have
an all-day experience learning from theatre professionals and
educators from across the U.S. about many different aspects of
theatre ranging from performance techniques to technical theatre.
The instructors bring to the classes and workshops a variety
of backgrounds and areas of expertise to share with the students.
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